Roller attachment for rocking chairs



Sept. 17, 1940. E. E. I oNGFELLow ROLLER ATTACHMENT FOR ROCKING CHAIRSFiled Sept. 28. 1938 ATTORNEY.

l 35 in Fig. 1; and frame is underhung whereby the gaps I6 betweenPatented sept. 17, 1940 n 2,215,425.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,215,425 ROLLER ATTACHMENT Fon. BOOKINGCHAIRS Earl E. Longfellow, Warsaw, Ind., assignor to Harry HerschelLeiter, Warsaw, Indf Application September 28, 1938, Serial No. 232,149

2 Claims. (Cl. 280-61) This invention relates to a roller attachmentadjustment of the tubes, the stirrup castings are for rocking chairs,and an object thereof is to spaced apart from each other selectively atpoints provide an adjustable support including wheels as required so asto receive the rockers 8 of a and stirrups so constituted as to bereadily aprocking-chair 9 between the inner and outer 6 plied to andremoved from a rocking-chair withflanges I0 and II of the correspondingcastings. 5 out securing means that ordinarily are resorted Each of saidcastings has integral with its outer to that tend to mar the rocker orother parts stirrup flange II a bracket I2, the lower part of the chairand require the use of tools and more of which is bifurcated to providean opening I3 or less mechanical skill when such devices are therein,said bracket constituting a guard for the 10 applied. correspondingouter end of the -frame and the 10V Another object of the invention isto provide wheel therein.

a roller attachment for' rocking-chairs that when Upon a stationaryaxle-shaft I4 in each stirapplied, the chair is elevated from the oor byrup casting is journaled a Wheel I5, preferably the attachment, merelyby applying rocking rubber-tired, and with the lower portion thereofmovement to the chair when the attachment is extending through theopening I3 in the bracket a 16 placed into position to receive theweight of the suiiicient distance that the frame when in operchair withits occupant, and which requires ating position is sustained by thewheels in a but negligible physical exertion upon the part of planesuitably spaced above the floor to permit the operator. free travelthereover. The ends of the shafts I4 And a further object of theinvention is to proextend respectively into the corresponding outer 20vide a roller attachment so constituted, that stirrup flanges II andguard-brackets I2, and when applied enables an attendant to maneuverthus each of said shafts receive support at both a rocking-chair aboutupon the floor within an ends in the corresponding stirrup castingswhile extremely confined area thereof, and move it the wheels aredisposed upon said shafts between about generally from one place toanother, withthe supported ends thereof. In this manner 25 outdiscomposure of the occupant. bending of said shafts when the frame isloaded Other objects and advantages of the invention by the chair andits occupant is circumvented. appear in the following description. Afeature of the invention is that the lower An illustrative embodiment ofthe invention portions of the stirrup castings as well as the is shownin the accompanying drawing, in which: telescopic tubular connectionsadjustably con- 30 Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a preferred formnecting the -castings are disposed in planes lower of the invention, aportion thereof being in secthan the axle-shafts I4 for the wheels, sothat tion; the frame normally is pendant from the axes of Fig. 2 is anouter end view of the device shown said shafts. In this respect themounting of the 5 Fig. 3 is a transverse section of Fig. 1 on the theinner and outer flanges I0 and II of the stirline 3-3 thereof, afragmentary part of the rockrups are always openly exposed upwardly inproping chair being included in the View. er position to receive thechair rockers. The illustrative embodiment of the invention Each stirruppreferably is padded with a cushconsists of a frame having two stirrupcastings I ion Il formed of rubber, felt or the like, and is 40 and 2that are adjustably connected together, disposed so as to over-lie theupper face of the preferably by telescoping tubes 3 and 4 that arebottom portion of the stirrup and the adjacent secured firmly inconnection respectively with faces of the flanges I0 and II, thusl tocircumvent the corresponding castings. 'Ihe tube 4 has in marring of thechair rockers when the device is its top an elongated slot 5 throughwhich loosely applied theretd y 45 extends a clamp-screw 6, the shank 'Iof which is Operation y threaded in Ithe tube 4, so that when the screwis tightened' its lower end bears against the In use, the rocking chair1s rocked elther forlower inner Wan of the tube y)y thus to hold thewardly or backwardlynand while thus tilted the telescopng tubes fromhaving relative axial attachment 1s moved in'under the chair so the 50movement-, The Screw 6 also, by extending rockers enter they gaps 1n thestirrups through .through the slot 5, prevents relative angular the opentops thereof. The chairis then rocked movement of the tubes, and whenthe screw is in the opposite direction onto the stirrups, whereloosenedaxial sliding movement of the inner tubev upon the Chair With itsOccupant iS eleVated 4 in the outer tube is permitted, and thus bybodily from the 11001' and balanced on the frame .55

2t While supported by the. wheels. Thus positioned upon the attachment,the chairis readily movable in all directions over the floor requiringonly slight physical exertion upon the part of the attendant. Theattachment is readily removed from operating connection with the chairmerely by tilting the chair forwardly or backwardly so that the rockersof the chair bear upon the oor, whereupon the attachmentis easily rolledfrom beneath the chair and out of the way, thus leaving the chairresting with its rockers on the floor. The forward and rear edges of thestirrups extend to points beyond the outer perimeters of j 'the wheelsso that when swung upon the axes of the wheels in either direction toreceive the rockers of the chair the lowermost Aedges of the stirrupsthen project a substantial distance beneath the rockers or havecontactrwith the oor. In this manner rocking of the chair into balanceposition onto the stirrups is greatly facilitated and without thrustingthe attachment out of rocker-receiving position during the transfer ofspirit or scope of the invention, and the following claims are intendedto be inclusive of such variations.

What I claim is:

1. A roller attachment for rocking-chairs consisting of a pair of wheelsaxially alined, axleshafts for said wheels, an underhung frame pendantlyconnected with respect to said axleshafts, said frame having a stirrupmember adjacent the inner end of each wheel and including y anadjustable connection arranged between said members to permit selectivespacing apart of said members toward or from each other, and a bracketon the outer end of each of said members constituting a Wheel-guarddisposed adjacent the outer end of the corresponding wheel and having anopening in its bottom through which the lower portion of thecorresponding wheel protrudes so that when the frame is in operativeposition it is held out of contact with the floor while said Wheels restthereon.

2. A roller attachment for rocking chairs, said attachment consisting ofa framevprovided at its endswith open top stirrup members and supportingwheels therefor, said members having forwardly and backwardly projectingextensions that project beyond the outer perimeters of said wheelsY thusto facilitate engagement of said members with the bottoms of thevrockers of a chair while the chair is rocked 01T balance and when saidchair is subsequently rocked into balanced position thereon.

EARL E. LONGFELLOW.

